Of Arranged Marriages, Music, and Love
by MoonXArtemis
Summary: Kagome had always been a normal, happy school girl. However, her life is turned upside down when on her sixteenth birthday, she's told that she has an arranged marriage with the cold, apathetic Sesshomaru Takahashi! But what happens when she meets his younger brother, InuYasha? Will she fall for him, or for Sesshomaru? InuYashaXKagomeXSesshomaru, KagomexInuYashaxKikyo
1. Scroll 1 - Birthday

**Author's Note: Okay. I just wrote this on a whim. I've never read or written any InuYasha fanfictions before...so please forgive me if it isn't too amazing. After all, it's my first time with this fandom. **

**I do own InuYasha. That is obviously why I am writing a fanfiction about it. Please note the sarcasm before you sue me, Rumiko Takahashi, real creator of InuYasha.**

_**SUMMARY:**_** Kagome had always been a normal, happy school girl. However, her life is turned upside down when on her sixteenth birthday, she's told that she has an arranged marriage with the cold, apathetic Sesshomaru Takahashi! But what happens when she meets his younger brother, InuYasha? Will she fall for him, or for Sesshomaru? InuYashaXKagomeXSesshomaru. **

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Scroll One

I woke up to silence.

That shouldn't be very shocking, I suppose, for you, or for anyone else. But the reason it was so shocking wasn't the silence itself; it was that I had never, ever woken up to silence on my birthday.

Always, my mother would stand there, holding a cake or another delicious treat, with my twin sister Kikyo and younger brother Saito by her side. They'd sing me the birthday song, loud and off pitch, and I'd blow out the candles and hug them and eat a slice of cake. But today, there was nothing but a heavy silence that seemed to clog my lungs and suffocate me. There was nothing but a gray sky, a dark room, shadows rising against my green walls.

I felt tears glaze my eyes over, a few drops caressing my cheek and splattering against my arm as they fell. My mother had died a year ago, as of today; she'd lost her life in a car crash on my birthday, driving to get me a birthday cake. Because it was October, there had already been a few snow falls, and black ice had dangerously coated the roads, hidden behind every turn, pushed up against the sidewalks. She'd been driving too fast, late for picking me up, and the car had slid on ice when she tried to stop from colliding against one car; this caused her to collide against another. We'd waited for her, me in a party hat and comfortable sweats, Kikyo in her nice red dress, dad with a slight smile on his face as he set the table. But when there was a knock on the door, it wasn't mom. It was a police officer dressed in blue, looking sober and intense. And so now, the only thing I can think of as I get up and make my bed is the coldness of mom's body and the dullness of her eyes as she'd lay in that hospital bed, the machine beeping and slowly coming to a stop, her lungs no longer functioning, heart no longer palpitating. I'd been very close to my mom, closer than anyone else. She'd been my best friend, my cheerleader, my emotional support. And now, the silence was just a reminder of her death. I wiped my tears and tried to push the memories away, but they flooded my mind, vicious and as clear as if it had only been yesterday. I remember everything about that day in detail; and that was almost the worst part of it all. I closed my hand in a fist, missing the warmth of her fingers in mine as she kissed my cheek and wished me a happy birthday.

October 1st was no longer what I knew and recognized as my birthday. When that date came up, I thought of her death, and not my birth. I wondered if it'd stay that way forever. I wanted to crawl back beneath the thick silk covers, but the clock in my bedside table read 6:55 A.M. I showered and quickly dressed in my Shikan Private Academy uniform; a pair of knee length white socks, black pennyloafers, a green skirt, and a white sailor top with a green cape, sleeves and white trimming with a red bow at the front. I didn't bother doing my hair or make up; I honestly didn't want to put effort into anything today. Finally, I slipped on a silver necklace, with a pale purple jewel shard pendant hanging from the end. It was the gift my mother had given me last year, before I'd left for school. I had never taken it off, except to shower. I let the jewel fall into my palm and quickly tucked it inside of my school shirt before the tears could come again.

"Good morning, Kagome," I heard a calm voice say as I entered the dining room. At the sleek, long black wood table that could seat twenty four, despite us having only five members in the family, my twin sister Kikyo was seated. She - and my little brother, Saito, who was also at the table, plus my father, who had already left for work - were the real reason I had gotten out of bed today. I was bold (and sad) enough to ditch school, probably for the rest of my life; but I knew my family needed me there, to help them, because they were suffering just like me, and we'd do better together. I'd always been the optimistic one in the family, and I knew if I let them see me doing stuff like that, we'd fall apart.

"Good morning, Kikyo!" I replied, forcing enthusiasm into my voice. Kikyo nodded politely. She looked calm, the perfect picture of serenity. Her eyes were apathetic and her pale face was void of any emotion, but that wasn't new. If anyone looked at her, they'd think she wasn't affected by my mothers death. Yet I knew. Kikyo was just as pained as me, but she'd always been one to push her emotions so far inside her that they almost didn't exist. She'd been that way since we were kids. Still, I wondered how she could sit there and be so emotionless while I practically fell apart. "And good morning to you too, Saito," I said to my brother. He gave me the smallest of smiles, through a mouthful of pancake. I sat down in front of them at the opposite side of the table.

"Happy birthday, Kikyo," I added, so quietly could hardly hear my words. Her eyes flashed towards me once, and I saw pain in her dark orbs; but soon it was gone, and she nodded, without saying a word. We ate breakfast in silence. My father wasn't there- he had to work almost constantly everyday except for sundays. He was the owner and head of the powerful Higurashi Corporation, a business company known throughout the entire world. As such, he had many things to take care of, and he tried his best to make time for his family with his tight schedule.

"I'm walking to school today," Saito announced. I looked at him and nodded. "I'll inform Karesou," Kikyo said softly, referring to our private driver. "Okay. Well, I'm off," He said, and the large double doors to our house clicked shut a few minutes later. I looked at Kikyo, who gestured for me to follow her to the front of the house, where a large, sleek car awaited, ready to take us to our school. We made our way towards the front doors when suddenly Onigumo, our french maid, waltzed in with an envelope in her hand.

"Lady Kikyo," She squeaked, and bowed. She turned and bowed to me too. "Lady Kagome. Your father wanted me to inform you that you shall not be attending school this morning." She held out the envelope. Next to her feet rested to intricately wrapped gifts. One was defintiely mine; wrapped in shiny, emerald green paper with a silver bow. Green was my favorite color. Kikyo's was deep scarlet red and tied with a white bow. Her favorite color was red, which is how I knew it was her present. I took the envelope and ripped it open.

"Huh? We're...meeting him and his friends for tea?!" I asked, as I read the letter over. Usually, I'd take any chance to miss school, but...it seemed weird. Something told me we weren't just going for tea. "Tea" was just an excuse for father to break bad news to us. I groaned, putting my hand against my face. I tried to convince myself it could be great news, but my heart told me I was right- it was definitely bad news. Kikyo took the paper from me and raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, Lady Kagome! He insists you open your presents and quickly get dressed for tea. He said to pay extra attention to your appearance. Karesou shall drive you." I opened my mouth to resist, because I didn't feel like dealing with any of this, but Kikyo placed her hand on my elbow and gave me a meaningful look. She looked sad, too, which surprised me, but her eyes also told me that it was no use fighting anything today. I slumped, defeated, and grabbed the green present. Kikyo and I opened ours, and I gasped when I saw the content.

It was a beautiful dress. It was a jade colored silk dress, with an empire waist and a silver belt around the waist. It had a flat neckline and ruffles around the neck, as well as at the ends. The dress had very thin straps that crossed one another at the shoulders, tying into intricate ribbons and creating a greek effect. It was amazing, and I loved it at once. "Oh, what a darling outfit!" Squeaked Onigumo, clutching her hands to her chest. I nodded, beaming at her, and held the dress against me. The color green looked best on me, because of my coloring, and it was also my favorite color. I set the dress down. "We're supposed to wear these to meet father, are we not?" Kikyo's voice said softly. I looked at her. Her dress was red, with a V-shaped neckline and straps that crossed at the back. There was a silver belt around the waist, made of crystals, and the material was thin chiffon. There was a gold design of a dragon to the side of the dress, and I noticed mine had a similar design of silver cheery blossoms. Father had outdone himself.

"Yes! Put these on quickly and do your hair and make up, girls." When we stared at her, Onigumo sighed. "Fine, just dress and at least brush your hair into a braid or something. He said it was important to look your best." Yeah, no, not today. We hurried upstairs. I slipped into the dress and left my uniform on a pile at the ground, then combed my hair once more and piled it into a sloppy bun, holding it together with a jade and pink flower hairpiece pin. I put on ballet flats and grabbed a black coat from my closet- it'd be raining soon. When I stepped out of my room, I saw Kikyo had already finished and was waiting for me at the front door. The dress looked perfect on her, hugging her figure perfectly, and she'd put her hair in a long braid down her back with a few loose strands. She'd always been beautiful - strangers stopped in the streets to tell her - but now she looked even prettier than usual. "You look nice," She said cordially as Onigumo escorted us to the limo out front. "You do, too," I said as I sat in the back seat of the car. She spared me a smile. The car coughed exhaust into the air, and soon we were speeding out of the neighborhood into the winding Tokyo streets.

After ten minutes of silence, I asked, "What do you think we're meeting him for?" I hadn't expected an answer outside of "Who knows?" or something amongst those lines. I definitely had not expected Kikyo to say,

"Well, I suppose it's about our arranged marriages. Sixteen is often the age at which women are told. It gives us time to prepare."

I turned to face her sharply, my jaw resting on the floor.

"W-w-what?! Arranged marriages?!" I screamed, grabbing the seat with clawed hands. Shock ran through my body as I stared wide-eyed at my twin, waiting for her to say I'd heard wrong or that it'd been a joke. But Kikyo wasn't the type to tease.

"Yes. Didn't father ever tell you? We've been arranged to marry into the Takahashi family since we were about six. Didn't you...know?" Kikyo looked just a bit surprised.

I could only stare, but anger and shock built up inside me. When we parked outside the Shino Hotel, I was seething, and marched inside to tell my father just how I felt. However, I'd only just entered the hotel before I ran into someone- _hard. _"Ow," I said as I fell. A hand caught me, cold against my back. Slowly, I glanced upwards to meet cold, amber eyes which gazed back at me emotionlessly.

_...Sesshomaru? _A small voice in my head said.

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**A/N: not the best but I have writer's block. Next chapter to come next week, maybe sooner depending on reviews. Please review, if I don't get motivated by reviews I tend to procrastinate . It will get better so please be patient!**


	2. Scroll 2 - Inuyasha

**Author's Note: 6 reviews, that's good for me, thank you to everyone who reviewed. I'd also like to thank USERNAME for pointing out that I kept calling Kagome's brother Saito when his name is Souta. Honestly, I could've sworn his name was Saito. I was 505% sure...lol. I am bad with names unless they are the very main characters. Took me til episode 78 to get Miroku's name right. **

**This chapter should be slightly better, still winding up the story, been busy so writer's block is still standing, sorry, I hope you enjoy.**

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Scroll Two 

"S-Sesshomaru?" I stammered, as the pale boy's hands pressed against my back. The name hung in the air for an intense moment as he continued to stare coldly. His eyes gave nothing away, and his porcelain skin sculpted his features into a blank face. Some part of me wondered what he was thinking, but I had bigger worries as of now. I sucked in a breath and managed to lean upwards. Sesshomaru released me as soon as I was steady, feet planted solidly against the floor beneath me. For a second the silence continued to suffocate us, and then without a word, he turned and walked away gracefully. I blinked, my mind going completely empty, and finally managed to get myself together.

"Sesshomaru!" I half-shouted after him, taking another step forward. Briefly, he paused and turned his head halfway to face me. I could only see the left side of his face, and his eyes stared straight at the wall next to him. "Um...thank you. For catching me. I can be pretty clumsy sometimes, but not often. Usually I'm pretty good about watching where I step. But I guess today I was a little upset, because my dad has these news for me, only I'm not really supposed to know what they are but see my sister told me and so- oh..." I paused abruptly as I realized I was blabbing. I bit my lip and a light blush of embarrassment fanned across my cheeks. "I mean, thanks. That's...thanks." The words fell out of my mouth clumsily. I was still in a daze, shocked- from the sudden fall, from the news Kikyo had told me. From that cold stare Sesshomaru had given me- his stares always left me sorta shaken up.

Don't get me wrong- I haven't got a crush on Sesshomaru. I've known him forever. Even though he's about a year and a half (almost two) older than me, our parents are good friends, and because they both own large and successful businesses, we played together since we were babies, or something like that. In fact, Sesshomaru and I used to be the best of friends, about nine years ago. We did everything together, and we got along so well. But he'd become detached, distant, and eventually we'd parted ways. I'd tried to connect with him a few times after that happened, but when you grow up you start seeing the differences between a boy and a girl, and it's hard to bring a broken friendship back together. Because we were so close before, and I hardly saw him outside of the hallways at school anymore, I'd been shocked to see him being the one to catch me. Too shocked to put together the fact that 1) He was also missing school, 2) He was dressed formally like Kikyo and I, and 3) Our parents were business partners, we were both at the same hotel, and I was supposed to be told of my arranged marriage today, which meant... 4) Sesshomaru was a Takahashi, and Kikyo said we'd marry one today, which meeeaanttt...

"Kagome, are you alright?" Asked a quiet voice. Kikyo's hand gently touched my shoulder. Her eyebrows were drawn together with worry, and her eyes looked at me softly and almost in a motherly way. I thought again about how different she and I were, shook my head yes, and threw her a bright smile. "I guess I got too mad and didn't watch there I was going..." I frowned now, remembering my mood. "I can't believe dad didn't tell me." I felt my shoulders sag in defeat. "I know we don't have the closest relationship, but...isn't this something I should know...and he told you, didn't he...?" Kikyo gave me a sad, empathetic look - I guess she could tell I was more sad than mad. Her hand slid down to my elbow. Carefully she guided me through the hallways, pressing a few elevator buttons. I was glad to have her there. She knew when I needed her to take charge, just as I was one of the few people who could read her hidden emotions.

We arrived at the hotel's tea room soon enough. It was quite crowded for such a rainy weekday- I couldn't imagine why anyone thought to drink tea at a time like this. I kept my mouth pressed in a straight line as I scanned the room and my chocolate eyes finally settled in my father's gray hair. He wore a black suit and a red tie, and was laughing at something another man with white hair was saying. I began to shake, ready to start yelling about my feelings, but Kikyo shot me a look and stirred me toward the table. There were six seats total, two taken by the fathers. two for me and Kikyo...two for the boys we were soon to marry. My mother took one look at me and his smile nearly disappeared. "Kagome..." If looks could kill, he'd be way dead. He turned to Kikyo. "You told her?" Kikyo replied coolly, "She deserved to know that you were going to rip away her freedom." And I was surprised to hear her voice had an angry edge. I felt comforted knowing she was on my side, and that she shared my thoughts regarding this.

My father recovered quickly. "Mister Takahashi, these are my beautiful daughters, Kikyo and Kagome Higurashi. They are the ones who are to wed the heirs to the Takahashi company." Mr. Takahashi looked us over once, then nodded, offering a small smile. "They're more beautiful than I bargained for. It's a pleasure to meet you, ladies." I was angry, but I managed to smile almost genuinely at Mr. Takahashi when I shook his hand. Even though I hated the idea of marrying, I liked him at once. Kikyo didn't say a word, but I did. "The pleasure is mine, Mr. Takahashi." He beamed and my father cleared his throat. "Here they come," He said, almost proudly, looking at a spot over our shoulders. He didn't need to say who. I felt the rage build up inside me again and I slammed my fists against the table, standing up abruptly.

"I have something to say," I said loudly, though not shouting. I didn't want to cause a commotion, but I wanted to be heard. Mr. Takahashi and my father snapped their eyes towards me, startled. "I know I'm not a normal girl- I've an heiress to the powerful Higurashi Corporation. I'll never go to public school or to a dance or to a real prom, or eat at a fast food joint with friends, or have to work part time to get money to buy things. I understand and accept this- I know I was blessed to be born into this family, and I understand that sometimes I have to make sacrifices. I'm willing to give up my whole future just to be the heiress to this corporation. I am willing to give up dreams of being a musician, because I know it is my to inherit the company. However I absolutely refuse to give up marrying for love. I know that marriage is what creates these mergers, I know it's what helps our businesses and economy grow. I _know. _But for me, marriage has been the only thing I get to keep. I can't be normal, can't follow my dreams, so can't I at least have a normal marriage? Can't I at least have this ONE thing that everyone should have?! Mother always told me to marry for love, and I've always wanted to. Never have I even considered having that right, the freedom to marry whom I choose, taken away from me! And I know it'll cost our business a contract, but I am sorry- I absolutely REFUSE TO MARRY SOMEONE I DON'T LOVE!" I didn't mean to scream, but in the passion of my speech increased, so did the volume of my voice.

Angry tears had formed in my ears and were spilling down my cheeks. All the anger and sorrow I'd felt had finally been too much- I broke, crying as I yelled. Talking about marriage reminded me of my mother, who had told me stories of love and told me to never accept marriage without love. She was completely gone now, and I missed her like hell. It felt as if the only real thing left of her - to follow the advice she gave me and marry for true love - was being snatched from me, by two men who cared only about their companies. My throat hurt from screaming, and as my sobs grew louder too, I buried my face in my hands and turned around to flee the room. Everyone was staring, and I couldn't handle it- not today, the day of my mother's death, my birthday. Not ever. I turned to run away, nearly knocking over a chair, when I ran smack into someone for the second time that day.

I sobbed harder- like I needed this on top of everything!- but my crying stopped completely when I saw who it was. Correction; I had no idea who this was. I'd never met him before. He looked somewhat familiar, with long white hair and golden eyes, but I could swear I had never seen this boy before. I felt something in my chest contract, and my heart skipped a beat as tears slowly fell of my chin. All I could do was stare for at least a minute. The stranger was staring back, eyes slightly wide. Finally I broke eye contact long enough to realize Sesshomaru was standing next to him, looking as emotionless as ever.

Footsteps. I felt a hand on my back and saw another hand gesturing towards the golden-eyed boy.

"Kagome, this is my son, Inuyasha. Inuyasha, this is Kagome Higurashi, one of the girls who your brother is to marry."

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**A/N: Okay hope you enjoyed, see ya later gaters! **

**Yeah no I was kidding, here's more. It's a long chapter ;) Inu and Kagome won't get along at first because I am trying to follow their relationship in the anime. Don't worry, he'll warm up to her much faster in this fanfiction than the anime/manga though. **

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Startled, I turned to look at Mr. Takahashi, who smiled a bit forcefully at me as he gestured between Inuyasha and I. I turned back to look at Inuyasha, who was defiantly looking away from his father, arms crossed. Something about his stance - so rebellious and forced - made me smile. Then I realized what I'd just heard, and I snapped my gaze to Sesshomaru. He was already staring at me, eyes bottomless and rid of any emotion. As I stared back I saw a flcker of something in his dark orbs - regret. I didn't know at what, and it was gone too fast for me to realize wether I'd really seen regret on his face or not. Finally I felt my father grab my arm and tug me to my seat. He leaned down and whispered, "We'll talk about this at home, Kagome," but he had a guilty tone to his voice that made my heart melt just a bit. Maybe he did care for me after all. I glanced down at my nap and Kikyo tapped me with her foot.

She didn't say what everyone else would say. She didn't ask the usual "are you alright" question. She softly told me, voice confident and strong, "Everything will be alright." I smiled. That was what I loved about my sister. She knew exactly what to say, even though she hardly ever really spoke. A waiter came by to serve us tea and set a fresh tray of croissants and sandwiches down on our table. Nobody ate, except for InuYasha, who started stuffing his face. I stared incredulously.

"What?" He snapped through a mouthful of food. I frowned. "How can you possibly be eating at a time like this?!" He downed his tea in only one swallow. "Hey, can't do anything about this, and we'd just be wasting food." I glared. "That's pretty insensitive of you-" He glared, "Don't call me insensitive you-" But we were interrupted by father's voice. "Alright, so let's begin this...discussion." He cleared his throat. We both sat back down and glared. "The original deal was created between Takahashi and I upon the birth of Sesshomaru Takahashi, the eldest one present here today. Our companies are the most powerful in Japan and the world, and as thus we have been searching for a much stronger way of merging our companies. After we found out that my..." Father faltered. "...My wife...was pregnant with twins a month after InuYasha's biological mother also became pregnant, we decided upon this marriage as a way to bring our companies together. The youngest age that one may marry in Japan legally, even with parent's consent, is eighteen. Thus we decided to have you all meet when you were all seventeen, which is today, as it is Kagome and Kikyo's birthday. We thought it would be best to give you a year to get to know each other."

"Yeah, how very thoughtful of you," InuYasha grumbled, stuffing another croissant in his mouth. I suppressed a smile at his comment, and I even saw the corner of Kikyo's lips lift slightly in amusement. My father outright laughed, coughed, then continued. "So, we have gathered here today-" I slunk further into my seat. "Save the wedding speech for the wedding," I whispered. Kikyo did smile, and Inuyasha snickered. My father loudly cleared his throat. "-To acquaint you with one another. Inuyasha will be attending school with all of you as of today. We did our best to change all of your schedules so that you share classes, but seeing as Sesshomaru is a year older than Kagome, it didn't fully work out." He handed us all a piece of paper; new schedules. Looking at Kikyo's schedule I realized that I now had 4 classes with InuYasha, 2 with him, Kikyo and myself, 1 with Sesshomaru alone, and 1 with all three. Well, this would be awkward.

"So, this meeting was brief, as we just wanted to acquaint all of you and explain. Sesshomaru is engaged to Kagome as of now, and Inuyasha with Kikyo. After we all finish our tea and snacks, you may return to school." Kikyo nodded. I lifted my eyes to look at the two brothers, and saw InuYasha watching Kikyo, eyes slitted suspiciously. I sighed as he continued to observe and inspect her, no doubt trying to find out what sort of person she was. He wouldn't get anything from her. She met his eyes squarely, not showing any emotion at first...and then surprised me by smiling. Sure, it was the smallest of smiles, but to get her to smile at all was a huge feat. My brows came together and I saw Inuyasha glance down immediately, stuffing in more food. I sighed again. This would be a long day. I tried to catch Sesshomaru's eye but he was reading a book. I reached into the hand bag that had come with my new dress and put in my ear plugs, blasting my music to 85%. High enough to like low enough that father wouldn't complain. I looked up from my music and saw InuYasha watching me, somehow confused. He was holding a sleek device - an MP3? - in his hand, and I looked at him questioningly. He opened his mouth to ask me something when Kikyo and father stood. "It's time to leave for school," She said monotonously, and father nodded, herding us out. Once we were all in the same limo together InuYasha turned to me and held out his schedule.

"Looks like we've got first period together, huh?" He examined our papers. I nodded, not sure what else to say, and watched the rain drops slide down the limo's window as the car sped off towards school, towards my new and changed life.

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**A/N: I have 3 things to say. **

**1) Do not come at me with pitchforks and torches. Inuyasha is engaged to Kikyo, but this is not an InuxKikyo story. I added the mismatched couples for a plot twist, it will later come into play. **

**2) Unless you want a love triangle ;) **

**3) I wasn't sure whether to introduce Rin into the story, for Sesshy. Do you agree or do you want him to just love Kagome? **

**So tell me in the review! Rin or no Rin, love triangle or no, anddd sorry still have writer's block. Next chappie up sometime this weekend. If I get up to 30 reviews, I'll update tonight :O And that's asking a lot. I'm not asking for reviews, just saying if I get 30 I'll actually update tonight. If not probably Sunday ^_^**


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